SECRETARIES ROSS, LAIRD ISSUE JOINT STATEMENT ON CRAE’S “CALL TO ACTION TO PRESERVE CALIFORNIA AGRICULTURAL LAND”

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SACRAMENTO, July 11, 2014 – The California Roundtable on Agriculture and the Environment (CRAE), of which CDFA is an institutional member, has published a report entitled “A Call To Action to Preserve California Agricultural Land” The report’s recommendations are “are intended to provide a maximum amount of flexibility, incentives, tools, and options for landowners, government agencies, and communities to confront the challenges posed by the rapid conversion of agricultural land while simultaneously protecting and balancing these private rights and the public's interest.”

 

CDFA Secretary Karen Ross and her colleague, California Secretary for Natural Resources John Laird, issued the following joint statement upon the publication of the report:

 

“Farming and ranching are key parts of California’s historical identity. Over 150 years later, agriculture and food production remains a significant contributor to California’s economy and has a vital role in preserving our natural resources. As our economy continues to expand, we must preserve our pastures, orchards, and fields to ensure they don’t become a chapter in a history book.

 

“The prevention of agricultural lands conversion is a priority for the Brown administration. This is why we have focused a portion of revenues available in the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund contained in the FY 2014-15 budget to making strategic investments that protect agricultural lands to reduce greenhouse gases emissions.  The Sustainable Communities Agricultural Land Preservation Program created by the Strategic Growth Council is another investment tool we can use to further climate adaptation strategies by considering where critical agricultural lands currently exist and understanding more fully where to plan for and protect agricultural lands as our population grows and our climate changes.

 

“We thank the California Roundtable on Agriculture & the Environment for identifying a wide variety of policy options to enhance farmland preservation and we look forward to working together to advance this important issue.”